The writing-directing-acting in this season's finale was pure genius.
The fact that deep inside Chuck still loves Jimmy makes it more painful to watch. Despite how badly the show tries to portray Chuck as narcissist vengeful bastard but thorough this episode since the very first scene it subtly hints that he actually still had some love for his brother. People said that he relapsed because he lost his control, power ,ego etc but it seems that those only some contributing factors. The fact that although he was bitterly defeated at his most prideful career actually he was still okay until his last meeting with his brother. Those reluctant look, near gasping gesture with eyes almost closed doesn't seems like he was enjoying the moment after he unleashed those cruel words (yet true). Then it emphasizes more with those guilt stare in the middle of the night, right after he suddenly relapsed out of nowhere (or the way it seems). He was frustrated so much from his humiliation at HHM that he released those anger to Jimmy as painful as possible, without realizing the upcoming impact on him.
Backtrack some episodes to this season's undoubtedly most brilliant episode "Chicanery", we all heard what Jimmy said during cross examination about Chuck's 'diseases', or maybe back then we thought Jimmy was only trying to humiliate Chuck in front of his dear ex-wife or just staging steps to ultimately prove Chuck's delusion. But when we connect his words to this season's finale they suddenly become a pivotal narrative. He argued that Chuck developed symptoms of his illness shortly after divorced, in other words after lost someone he loves very much. It opens a whole dimension into Chuck's character, without the show ever attempted to blatantly show this connection. He hated his brother after lost his mother (whom he loved), he hated his world after lost his wife (whom he loved), and in the end he hated his life after lost his brother (whom he loved). The illness is pure trauma all along, and how can more sad it is that his last words that will eventually fully embraced by his brother (whom guaranteed to have whole another kind of trauma on his own).
The fact that deep inside Chuck still loves Jimmy makes it more painful to watch. Despite how badly the show tries to portray Chuck as narcissist vengeful bastard but thorough this episode since the very first scene it subtly hints that he actually still had some love for his brother. People said that he relapsed because he lost his control, power ,ego etc but it seems that those only some contributing factors. The fact that although he was bitterly defeated at his most prideful career actually he was still okay until his last meeting with his brother. Those reluctant look, near gasping gesture with eyes almost closed doesn't seems like he was enjoying the moment after he unleashed those cruel words (yet true). Then it emphasizes more with those guilt stare in the middle of the night, right after he suddenly relapsed out of nowhere (or the way it seems). He was frustrated so much from his humiliation at HHM that he released those anger to Jimmy as painful as possible, without realizing the upcoming impact on him.
Backtrack some episodes to this season's undoubtedly most brilliant episode "Chicanery", we all heard what Jimmy said during cross examination about Chuck's 'diseases', or maybe back then we thought Jimmy was only trying to humiliate Chuck in front of his dear ex-wife or just staging steps to ultimately prove Chuck's delusion. But when we connect his words to this season's finale they suddenly become a pivotal narrative. He argued that Chuck developed symptoms of his illness shortly after divorced, in other words after lost someone he loves very much. It opens a whole dimension into Chuck's character, without the show ever attempted to blatantly show this connection. He hated his brother after lost his mother (whom he loved), he hated his world after lost his wife (whom he loved), and in the end he hated his life after lost his brother (whom he loved). The illness is pure trauma all along, and how can more sad it is that his last words that will eventually fully embraced by his brother (whom guaranteed to have whole another kind of trauma on his own).